Today, Canadian Pacific announced it reached a multi-year agreement with U.S. Silica Holdings Inc. to move frac sand from the company’s newest mining and processing facility in Sparta, Wis., to destination markets.

U.S. Silica is building a frac sand facility on the CP's line in Sparta to produce high-quality northern white sand for use in U.S. and Canadian shales. The facility’s design will enable U.S. Silica to build unit trains of frac sand, focusing on shipments into the Bakken Shale in North Dakota. To be fully operational in first-quarter 2013, the plant will produce and ship three different grades of sand.

“Our agreement with U.S. Silica leverages the strength of CP’s network through Wisconsin with service to key [growing] energy regions throughout North America,” said Jane O'Hagan, CP’s executive vice president and chief marketing officer, in a prepared statement.

Meanwhile, Union Pacific Railroad announced it will spend more than $22 million to upgrade a 150-mile line between O'Fallons, Neb., and the Wyoming border.

Under way and scheduled for completion by mid-October, the work calls for replacing about one mile of rail in various curves, installing 16 miles of new rail, renewing surfaces at 93 grade crossings, replacing 93,400 ties and spreading 44,000 tons of ballast.

The project is part of UP’s $3.6 billion capital spending budget for 2012.